China National Aviation Corp., the sole agent of 10 mainland airlines in
Hong Kong, told travel agents in an Oct. 3 memo to stop selling tickets
to China to holders of certain passports and to refund tickets already
bought.

China has tightened controls on Middle
Easterners trying to travel to mainland China in the wake of the Sept.
11 terror attacks in the United States and the retaliatory strikes on Afghanistan.

The memo, which was obtained by The
Associated Press, urged travel agents to comply with rules issued by China's
Foreign Affairs Ministry and the Civil Aviation Administration imposing
"strict controls" on travelers. It was unclear if the memo had been sent
to travel agents in other countries.

A marketing manager at Air China,
who identified herself only by the surname Leung, said the carrier's Hong
Kong office received instructions from the Beijing headquarters to impose
the ban for "safety reasons."

The memo said added that there would
not be "a total ban" wording that may have been meant to allow room for
diplomats or dignitaries to travel.

A deputy marketing manager of the
China National Aviation Corp., who identified herself only by the surname
He, refused to answer questions about the memo, saying the matter was "the
business of a commercial company" and not the public's concern.

Pakistani diplomats have complained
that Beijing appears to have imposed a virtual ban on their nationals trying
to visit mainland China. Some Middle Eastern consulates have also said
that China has tightened entry requirements.

China's Foreign Ministry has acknowledged
that entry rules are changed from time to time, but it disputed contentions
this week that any nationalities have been singled out.

China's Civil Aviation Administration
and the official spokesmen of three carriers Air China, China Eastern and
China Southern denied a ban existed on Middle Eastern air travelers.

"We do not know such a thing," said
a CAA official in Beijing, who refused to give his name. The CAA official
said, however, that Chinese airlines have canceled flights to Pakistan
and Kuwait.

The Chinese memo said tickets should
not be issued to holders of the following passports: Afghanistan, Israel,
Egypt, Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Iran, Iraq, United Arab Emirates, Oman,
Bahrain, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Kuwait, Sudan, Libya, Algeria and
Pakistan. Holders of Palestinian passports were also barred.